Saint Joseph’s Leading Scorer Leaves the Team

Sophomore guard Deuce Jones II is no longer a member of Saint Joseph’s men’s basketball per a team announcement posted on Twitter on Tuesday, Dec. 23. Jones didn’t appear in the Hawks’ Dec. 22 loss to Coastal Carolina due to personal reasons.

Per the statement, “The Saint Joseph’s men’s basketball program announced that sophomore Deuce Jones II is no longer a member of the team. Saint Joseph’s thanks Deuce for his effort this season and wishes him success in the next chapter of his career.”

After winning the Atlantic-10 Rookie of the Year award at La Salle last season, Jones transferred to a Hawks team expected as a potential dark horse in the conference. Instead, head coach Billy Lange departed for the New York Knicks before the season started and, although the program had a replacement readily available in longtime Penn head coach Steve Donahue, they’ve struggled to deal with the lame duck situation so far.

At the time of his departure, Jones led the team in scoring with an average of 15.8 points per game. His Hawks’ highlights include a buzzer-beating three-point shot to give Saint Joseph’s a win over Temple in the Big 5 Classic’s third-place game on Dec. 6.